1.2 The relationship between gambling and homelessness – Homeless and Gambling Harm Learning

Harmful gambling is more common among people experiencing homelessness – almost 1 in 5 people experiencing homelessness experience clinically significant harmful gambling (18%)¹. This is much higher than the general population where 0.5% are said to be experiencing clinically significant harmful gambling.²

Click through the slides to see how the relationship between homelessness and gambling is complex³:

The potential for life change can be a powerful motivation to gamble – a small win could be the difference between sleeping in a hostel or sleeping on the street. However, harms associated with gambling can have a profound impact on the person’s health, resources, and relationships.

At the moment, most gambling harm prevention and treatment services are not designed to address the challenges of people experiencing homelessness⁷. Gambling is often hidden and is frequently overlooked by service providers⁸. However, people working in homelessness services are ideally located to identify people who might be experiencing harm and connect them to the most relevant support⁹.